Cellulose-ether composition



Tatented Sept. 4:, 1923.

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STEWART J'. CARROLL, OF ROCHESTER, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR TO EASTMAN KODAKCOMPANY, OF ROCHESTER, NEW YORK, A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

CELLULOSE-ETHER COMPOSITION.

No Drawing.

T all whom it may concern Be it known that I, STEWART J. CARROLL,

a citizen of the United States of America,

residing at Rochester, in the county 01f Monroe and State of New York,have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Cellulose-EtherCompositions, of which the following is a full, clear and exactspecification.

This invention relates to solvents for cellulose ethers and tocompositions produced by the aid of such solvents. One object of theinvention is to provide a solvent which will readily dissolve celluloseethers and 1 make as stron solutions as may be required in the varnisiand plastic arts, including solutions sufficiently viscous for filmmanufacture. Another object of the invention is to provide celluloseether compositions which may be made into strong flexlble transparentfilm. Other objects will hereinafter appear.

I have discovered that these objects may be attained by mixingdibenzylamine with 5 certain alkyl compounds and by dissolving celluloseether in the mixture. This mixture has a much greater solvent actionthan the sum of the solvent actions of its constituents when used alone.In fact dibenzylamine alone has practically no solvent power for theethers. The alkyl compounds which I may employ are the monohydroxyaliphatic alcohols containing less than six carbon atoms, acetates ofsuch alcohols, and 5 mixtures of these, and I designate these bytheexpression, a compound based upon a monohydroxy aliphatic alcoholcontainin less than 6 carbon atoms. In the preferre embodiments of myinvention I prefer to use the more volatile of these compounds such asmethyl alcohol, ethyl alcohol, methyl acetate, or ethyl acetate.

By way of example I may mix from 10 to 95 parts by weight ofdibenzylamine with 90 to 5 parts of methyl acetate. A 10 to 90 mixtureof dibenzyla-mine and methyl acetate for instance will dissolve fromonefourth to one-sixth (say one-fifth) of its own weight ofwater-insoluble ethyl cellulose to form a thick, Viscous, fiowablesolution suitable for film manufacture in the usual way.

Other substances which impart useful Application filed March 3, 1922.Serial No. 540,803.

properties to the film may be added to the fiowable composition such,for example, as triphenyl or tricresyl phosphate, camphor,monochlornaphthalene, etc.- The ingredients are of the commercial type,sufficiently purified to give film having the desired freedom fromcolor. On account of its relatively higher boiling point dibenzylamineevaporates more slowly and sufficient amounts of it remain in the filmto increase the useful properties of the latter.

Having thus described my invention,what I claim as new and desire tosecure by Letters Patent is:

1. A composition of matter comprising cellulose ether and dibenzylamine.

2. A composition of matter, comprising cellulose ether dissolved in amixture of dibenzylamine and a liquid compound which coacts with saiddibenzylamine to give said mixture greater solvent action on thecellulose ether than the sum of the solvent actions of its saidconstituents used alone, said liquid compound being based upon amonohydroxy aliphatic alcohol containing less than 6 carbon atoms.

3. A composition of matter comprisin cellulose ether, dibenzylamine andmethyfi acetate.

4. A viscous, fiowable, film-forming composition, comprising 1 part byweight of cellulose ether dissolved in from 4 to 6 parts of a mixturecontaining dibenzylamine and a liquid compound which coacts with saiddibenzylamine to give said mixture greater solvent action on thecellulose ether than the sum of the solvent actions of its saidconstituents used alone, said liquid compound being based upon amonohydroxy aliphatic alcohol containing less than 6 carbon atoms.

5. A composition of matter comprising cellulose ether in a mixture of 10to 95 parts of dibe-nzylamine with 90 to 5 parts of methyl acetate.

6. As an article of manufacture a flowed film comprising cellulose etherand dibenzylamine.

7. As an article of manufacture a flowed flexible film comprisingwater-insoluble ethyl cellulose and dibenzylamine.

Signed at Rochester, New York, this 24th day of Feb, 1922.

STEWART .I. CARROLL.

